Run with the Wind: Yuki Hayashi's comments for the OSTs
Original note (in Japanese) can be found here.
Translated by TrianaNero and Hiro. Please note that we are not professional translators, but we found the comments really interesting and really wanted to share it with you the best we can!
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Thank you, "Run With The Wind". I’m immensely happy to have been involved in this show. I would like to comment on the soundtracks while looking back on how I was working on this music and carrying this immense gratitude to the story. There are some spoilers closer to the end of the commentary, so please be aware of that.
「We Must Go」
The title was taken from a legendary song that was used in the end of Hakone Ekiden broadcasts — "I must go".
The intro part is quite long in this one, isn't it. Around 2 minutes. But there's a reason for that — I wanted to properly introduce the audience to the world of Kazetsuyo, to its setting, that's why I made the intro part longer. The scenery I imagined was set just before dawn, with rays of the morning sun shining through the dark and illuminating the city.
What is running?
It’s rushing forwards and looking for the answer, but it’s also something you can’t quite reach on your own — so you run with your friends, and you get stronger.
"Aah, I'm sure that the path I chose isn't wrong!" — that's the kind of feelings I wanted to put into making this track.
It's a story about sports and youth, but the majority of characters are university students, and compared with shows about high schoolers it might seem somewhat less emotional, but in the end things get quite exciting, and I wanted everyone to feel that too.
There are many sequence-based phrases, because I hoped to create this feeling of a continuous exercise that is running. I also use quite a lot of vocals, which I will talk about in more detail later, but in this piece I hoped to capture the feeling of breathing, what goes through your head while you’re running.
After that long intro we decided not to play the main motif on a great piano — we used an upright piano and put some felt on it, which softened the sound. Had it been the majestic sound of the grand piano, it wouldn't really feel like "searching for the answer on your own", right? I felt that this unique piano tone, slightly muffled by the felt, was perfect for describing those characters that tried to move forward despite the uncertainties.
As for the main motif around 3:00-3:48, it depicted Aotake's members coming together and joining their respective strengths as teammates. The repetition of this motif until 4:26 shows their unwavering conviction and strength as they are striving to the top. The strings perform the melody in a really high pitch, and that creates the image of striving forward despite breaking your limits.
In the high point of the track, starting from 4:26, I wanted to express the sense of accomplishment and exaltation that comes from making that final spurt. Outro comes back to the calm atmosphere in the beginning of the piece, and it's like a gust of wind dying down.
If you can take in the world of Kazetsuyo and its flow in this soundtrack, it'd make me really happy.
「Campus Life」
「Aotake」
「Residents」
These three are everyday pieces, well, they're all focused around Aotake one way or another — when the residents are chilling or fooling around. These tracks are performed in quite a relaxed, casual way. I was really devoted to club activities back when I was a university student too, so this setting of hanging out with your teammates really made me nostalgic and brought back the memories of gathering at senpais’ place and drinking some booze for the first time~... Senpais, are you doing well there~?!
Another thing is, whenever I hear one of these tracks, Nira always comes to mind. Nira is so cute, right, he's adorable!!
But my Chloe is still the best.
「Shooting Star」
This is a piano arrangement of the main theme, and since it's quite gentle and not the one to take the spotlight, it was used in a variety of scenes.
I really love the title — shooting star.
Speaking of which, all soundtracks except for "We Must Go" and "The Black bullet" were named by Matsushita-san from Production I.G.
「What It Means To Run」
This piece tells us about different reasons why every character in the story keeps running, and also about Haiji's true feelings. The first half and the ending are played simply on an electric piano, and in the second half there's a pleasant melody performed on strings as if to "wrap" the scene.
「Real Intention」
This track is for those scenes when Aotake members are being... How do I put this, doubtful, as if probing each other. When Haiji claims that they're going to run in Hakone Ekiden, some are having second thoughts, some are decisive, some troubled, others just straight out refuse, and some are being literally chased into it. This piece is about the irritation, anxiety, being cornered into doing something.
「The Only Girl」
And this is Hana-chan's theme! I hope she gets better at cooking.
「Still Wear The Jersey」
When I heard it again after a while, I thought, "Huh? Hang on, did I write this one?". It's the music Yuki was listening to...
「The Past」
It's the piece that represents past trauma and a strong heart. It expresses the heavy weight of the words of someone who knows how difficult Ekiden really is, the impatience caused by earnestness, and Haiji's strong intent to face the challenge.
「Mutual」
Apparently there are many fans saying that they love this one. Thank you, I like it too~.
When we had a meeting with the director, I was told that they want something meant more for a proper drama rather than an anime. Since most of the main cast are university students, not high schoolers, there are many complex ideas and their own problems to consider, so I thought that there should be a less emotional, cool track somewhere.
「The Scream」
The track of clashing. It's serious, with heavy subtext and the fight that comes out of it. In order to express the mess of everyone's thoughts I deliberately used a lot of vocals here.
「Alone」
It's a mellow BG track, I created it using 3 flat patterns and combining them, aiming not to distract the viewers from what's happening on the screen. It can be used for some important, leveled conversations.
「Eyecatch」
It's all for the sake of Nira.
When I got the eyecatch animation, I just looked at Nira for a couple of minutes and quickly got it done.
「Haiji the Strategist」
As I was making it, I thought, "Ah, the person writing it is really nuts, he's gone mad, such a pity…” But it was fun, especially looking for voice samples.
「Demon Sergeant」
The track of a demon, that's it.
「Team」
The intro and the first half are somewhat plain — when you just run with all your heart without thinking and yet it feels so complete, it captures the process of running itself. The second half is about the excitement when the team is complete. This track is about gradually becoming happier.
「In a Sweat!」
This one really catches the atmosphere of the Kazetsuyo world, I really like it.
I made it by expanding the image of some sequence-like piano phrases. Kazetsuyo soundtracks actively incorporate vocals, which I think is great for portraying things like the characters’ breathing, thoughts and feelings while running, and it comes in handy in this piece as well.
「Onwards, to Hakone」
I really, really love this one.
How do I put this, it's like the "Become stronger" [強くなれ] track from one particular volleyball anime — there are many things said, and in the end they complete each other. I imagine everyone responding to Haiji's aspirations. It's a melody that brings them together, aiming for Hakone, and things get exciting.
「One Step Forward」
I think it really fits Kazetsuyo's atmosphere. Facing forward, having fun, being in good spirits. After some practicing the characters become more motivated, they start to understand the joy of running — that's what I was thinking about while composing it.
「Reality」
This track describes the stage when they can’t reach an agreement, don't understand or know much about Ekiden, but it doesn’t make the mood even heavier.
「Night Sky」
I had this image of standing alone and speaking your mind, carrying out someone else's feelings — it's a quiet and just a bit of a tense scene. Thus the calm piano solo.
「Track Meet」
I personally like this one — mute guitar in the intro is cool. It was meant to emphasize the atmosphere of a track meet, but ended up being used in many other scenes as well, and I think it’s also glad.
「Distance」
It's about the seriousness of the race, pushing yourself and being stressed, dashing forwards. I was making it so that this pain would build up gradually in the second half.
「Trust」
It's Haiji's theme. It's meant to show him as a person — Haiji, who touched everyone's heart, his conviction what Hakone Ekiden and running are to him. I was thinking about all this as I was writing it. This motif is also scattered in the latter half of "The wind is blowing strongly" and "The black bullet".
「The Mountains of Hakone Are the Steepest」
This first track of the second CD is actually pretty much the same as the one called "The Top". The difference is the sequence in the beginning — it is played on piano in one case, and on a synthesizer in the other. I made this piece for the final episode, so I ended up with 2 patterns and I just asked them to use the one that would fit the animation better. Thank you for recording both.
「Slice of Life」
Just like the title says, it's a track for daily life! If you work while listening to this track, you can feel yourself a member of Aotake. I like how the wind chime disappears in the electro around 1:00.
「Position」
Technically it's also one of the daily songs, but it's a better fit for serious conversations and problems that trouble the characters. I tried to avoid making the tone too heavy.
「Escape」
Kakeru's punch!! — that's what the track is about, the high school accident. It doesn't only reflect his own feelings but also the atmosphere in the track club at the time, the pressure coming from the coach, athletes trying to endure it, and Sakaki's resentment to running — I wanted the music to express all that.
「Explanation」
Another flat track for explanations and set-up. It is made to be as simple as possible, but I included some bizarre passages, like the one around 0:35, to correspond with the changes on the screen.
「Season」
The tension and anxiety you feel before the tournament, but at the same time some sense of fulfillment over "coming so far", the realization that now you can only keep pushing forwards, the solid trust in your teammates — the track encompasses all those feelings.
「Qualifier」
Another track for set-up. There isn't much development in terms of the flow of music, it is meant to support the conversation. Electric guitar brings some tension in the second half.
「Change」
I imagined a scene where something happens at a race and things get going. It's got Tanabe-san's bass and Hige-chan's drums, and those fit perfectly.
「Haiji and Fujioka」
I was thinking about Haiji and Fujioka, runners who can understand each other well without too much talking, their past, their friendship originating from high school.
「Tactics」
A set-up track, say, for giving instructions to the runners or explaining the situation during a race. It's a plain piece of music, but in the second half I spiced things up a little just in case.
「Trouble」
It was hard for this old man to write it... It's a piece to make Shindo's painful running even more painful, haha.
「Regret」
It's about all their troubles, past, Haiji's broken past — when he couldn't run, even though he really wanted to, he wanted to see his dream come true with his teammates. That's the kind of emotions I wanted to paint it with. Around 0:39 there's a bit where violins' harmonics sound really sad, and I'm glad it could be used effectively.
「Strength」
Musa~ I made this one just for Musa~!
「Gamble」
It's plain, but I aimed for some tension and challenging attitude along the lines of the track, so that's what that techno is for~
「Loneliness」
Working on the main battle, Hakone Ekiden, was troublesome, I couldn't quite grasp the advance of the plot.
It's not as dynamic as volleyball or dancing, on the contrary it's all about expressing your feelings in a monologue. I wrote many pieces for how the runners look from the spectators’ perspective, but also many of those that express what they feel on the inside, and this is one of them. It somehow brings Yuki to my mind.
「Speed and rhythm」
It's an arrangement of "One step forward" that leaves behind some freshness, feelings of strength and sprinting. Whenever I hear it Jouji and Jouta start chatting enthusiastically in my head.
「To Be Free and Equal」
The hardships of running, confronting them and the strength that you need to succeed — that's what I wanted to show in this piece.
「Dream」
It's the piece that is used during that phone call with Haiji before the race, when he tells Kakeru, "You are the best runner to me". I imagined this conversation as I was writing it, it felt refreshing but not only that — I also wanted to show the elevating feeling of facing what is about to start.
「The Black Bullet」
I'm sure you've been waiting for this one — a true turmoil of feelings and emotions.
When the announcer comments on Kakeru’s incredible comeback, he says, "The pace of Kurahara from Kansei Uni just won't drop! He's wonderfully pushing forwards, rushing like a black bullet!" — that's where the title came from, and it's really cool, thank you so much.
Either way, I wanted to express the feeling of overwhelming speed. There's a faint ticking sound of the second hand of a clock that emphasizes it.
There are barely any Rock-like pieces in Kazetsuyo, I mostly used electronica, but this one is different, I made it to be more vigorous and kind of in high spirits.
At the same time there are many scenes when Kakeru is asking himself questions, so I put a special part that would express his feelings in the middle of the piece. From that it switched to the pure joy that running brings when composing this track.
I'm sure many of you noticed that there are motifs of the main theme and Haiji's theme used in this piece.
I wanted to create a soundtrack that would in a way answer Haiji's question to Kakeru, "Do you like running?". So I went from the motif of the main theme around 0:20 to Haiji's motif around 0:40, and then from around 1:00 there's a bit where the main theme returns as Kakeru's answer, and the pace accelerates even more.
Please listen to it when you're just jogging or running late somewhere, I'm sure you'll get some good time out of it.
「Turmoil」
I composed this one with the images of the accident during Hakone Ekiden and the tension of the race. It's supposed to be made of simple phrases and leave a cold impression overall.
「Determination」
This piece is for the passing of the sash between sections 9 and 10, from Kakeru to Haiji, when their sentiments meet halfway. There's nothing too intricate, it's an arrangement of the main theme on strings played in a relaxed tempo.
「The Wind is Blowing Strongly」
It's an arrangement of the climax of the Haiji's theme. I personally feel like you could call it another main theme. I made it thinking about how Haiji was reminded of the sky in his hometown as he was running. He had a knee injury that may have forced him to take a roundabout way, but as a result he was able to strengthen all his feelings about running and meet the best team.
It starts with a bit of a sad piano passage that brings you back in the past. Kinda like a monologue where you face this past yourself — and a solo chorus by Sen-kun expresses that. Once you've returned to the past and faced it, there are your teammates around you, you want to keep going and become stronger — this bit lasts until around 2:02. I can't help but absolutely love this upsurge, and I was writing this music while reading the scenario and crying.
I made it for Haiji, but in the end I was inspired by him, and it turned into a piece for everyone who has to face themselves. I think that the title suits it perfectly.
「The Top」
I was imagining Haiji crossing the finish line as I was writing it. It's an arrangement of "Onwards, to Hakone". It's about that sash that connected their running, their emotions, their own summits, so I was composing it for every top that each one of them saw. I really love the bit around 2:00, which has this feeling of accomplishing your goal. I cried while making this soundtrack as well, I cry all the time, don't I (laughs)
「To the Other Side」
It was used in the final scene — a get-together of the teammates three years later. Of course they're being nostalgic, but each one of them is walking a new path towards their future. With this kind of thoughts I made a gentle arrangement of the main theme. There's nothing "final" about the last passages, and that's the way it's supposed to be — they will keep running, keep living for a long, long time.
That's it for the soundtracks commentary!
I took my time writing it, spurred by the overwhelming love I have for Kazetsuyo! If you watch the anime again some time, knowing how the music came to be, it would make me very happy. My immense gratitude goes to everyone involved in the production and to the fans that kept watching it, thank you so much~!
Omake
Here are Nira and Chloe (my daughter) drawn by my wife, it was used in the CD. My wife said, “I tried painting the sash with the same color as Nira!”.
Only it wasn’t that Nira.
T/N: nira is a kind of green onion, Chloe is Hayashi-san's dog (he often calls her "daugher").
Omake no. 2
Here's the sheet notes for the gentle piano solo of the main theme. (This title is still from the production stage.) There's only the main phrase, but still, if you'd like to have it, here you go~
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Thank you very much for reading! You can let us know what you think about the translation here, and if you want to express your gratitude to the composer (which we highly recommend), you can do it here and tweet to Hayashi-san, he really appreciates your comments and support!
Please remember that the best way to support the composer is by purchasing CDs or official online releases! Don't forget that music is a way of making a living just like anything else ╰(*´︶`*)╯
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